Concrete Kingdom
by endoftheday
Summary: Spite, fury and pure energy. "You own over fifty lighters," he said snorting, it was almost cruel and most definitely angry. "You steal sporadically and smoke. You're without a doubt the scruffiest girl I've ever met." OCxPaul. Imprint story with a kick.
1. Uprising

Hello and welcome to the show!

**In case you were wondering and didn't get the summary, this is a OCxPaul fan fiction. So for that reason alone, it's slightly AU.**

**Aaaand in case you were interested, this was going to be an original piece of fiction by moi, but it just screamed TWILIGHT and so, here I am. :)**

**This will be a slow moving fiction and for that I apologise. I've posted fiction on here before but due to life in general and several cases of severe writers block - I had to put them on hiatus and eventually I deleted them. Fiction that I wrote when I was fourteen is obviously not going to be the same as what I write now.**

**That being said, I'm treating this as my first fiction purely because I need to see this through to the end. **

**Disclaimer; I wish Jasper owned ME. Sadly, he doesn't and Stephanie Meyer owns all. **

**Currently listening to: Uprising by Muse.**

* * *

The play park was almost pitch black, with only the street lights to illuminate the swings, slide and seesaw that stood upon chipped bark, casting eerie shadows on the concrete that surrounded it.

I sat on the top of the slide, watching my make believe concrete kingdom below. My friend Ralph was slowly ascending the slide, gripping onto the blue plastic sides to keep himself from sliding backwards.

"Elise," he panted playfully. "Help me!"

I rolled my eyes at his game, but I couldn't be surprised at his antics as this happened quite a lot. This 'watching' of my make believe kingdom might be just that, make believe, but Ralph was much better at this game than I was.

"No, peasant. Make your own way in life."

He grumbled under his breath, dramatically wiping his brow as if it was covered in sweat, his light brown hair now in disarray.

"Jesus, Elise. Please help, I'm gonna fall, for sure!"

I struck my pale hand out, which he nimbly grabbed onto although he didn't put any pressure onto it in the slightest. He ran up the remaining space of the shining blue slide, collapsing in a heap on top of me.

"Shit, get off, you're heavy."

"Only certain parts," he said with a wink.

I punched him hard; he seemed to get my point and scooted over. We sat on the platform, crushed between plastic and metal but strangely comfortable none the less.

"Last day of school tomorrow Jelly Elly."

Another punch, this time in his ribs. I couldn't stand that nickname. "Uh huh, what's your point?"

Ralph scoffed at me, green eyes wide in disbelief. I was quite jealous of his eyes. "Well we have to do something, last day of school. Next year, we're seniors. Exciting right?"

"How is it?" I said, picking some grass off my already dirty jeans. "We still get one year of school to not look forward to."

He punched me this time. "Yeah, but we have to leave our mark. It gives a good impression to the kids who will be juniors next year."

I shut my eyes, digging my hands around in my coat pocket, rattling the keys to my house as I did. I pulled out a packet of cigarettes and offered Ralph one, as usual.

"I don't know where or how you get these. Every time I ask someone to buy me some they always turn me down. Sucks balls."

Ralph wasn't that eloquent, but then neither was I.

"It's 'cause you have a baby face, Ralph. They think you're like, thirteen or something."

I lit my cigarette and inhaled the glorious cancer stick. Upon hearing my insult thrown at him, Ralph tried pushing me down the slide, but I pushed my legs against the metal barrier to keep myself steady.

"Fuck off, Elise. I look way older than seventeen as it is."

It was true, although I wouldn't admit it to him. He had a big enough head as it is. Ralph had shaggy light brown hair that fell into his green eyes, with purple shadows underneath indicating his lack of sleep. He also had stubble on his face that had littered there for the past four days, but there was no sign of baby-faced roundness found on an innocent child. He was sharp angles and intense eyes, undoubtedly beautiful.

"Whatever, old man."

Ralph nodded, looking smug. "That's what I'm talking about, bitch."

"Ralph, we both know for a fucking fact," I said, wriggling and moving closer to the slide, ready for my quick get away should he try to hold me back.

"That you are, in actual fact, _my_ bitch. Woof."

"Bitch!" He exclaimed, chortling behind me. The slide rocked under the pressure of two fully-grown kids sliding down the flimsy plastic, the metal rusted.

I laughed at him scrambling after me, as I dropped my cigarette on the concrete floor, I didn't feel guilty. Lots of little dirty cigarette ends littered this desolate play park. Hardly anyone used it anymore.

He wrapped his arms around me tightly, squeezing hard and nuzzling his stubble into the crook of my neck. "Yeah, I'm your bitch. Woof."

Quickly, I grabbed my digital camera out of my bag. I took a no doubt hazy looking picture of us, Ralph probably pulling a face. I aimed the camera at the playground and took another.

We left then, lighting another cigarette and waving goodbye to the concrete kingdom, where the kids ruled nothing but swings, a seesaw and a very flimsy slide.

- - - - - -

My alarm glittered menacingly at me, flashing it's red light before wailing. _Time to get up, child, go to school and don't forget to brush your teeth._

I almost snarled at the beeping, but I pushed my legs out of the duvet regardless. There wasn't much room to move around in my bedroom. A shoebox room for the middle child, a tiny closet, a single bed, a bedside table (that was far from safe and tipped on to the scale of rickety) and my shining feature.

Stacked up at the end of the bed and glued together with industrial super-glue, six wooden wine crates, holding all of my books (a small collection, at the moment) and C.D's. They still smelled of red wine.

As soon as my feet collided with the floor, they hit something soft. The soft thing groaned.

"Ralph. You stayed here?"

"_Humph._ Coffee."

Grumbling, I got out of the mass of blankets and duvet and tried to dodge my way around the mass of limbs that belonged to my friend.

"Two sugars," he mumbled again.

Like hell we would have sugar in the house. Let alone coffee. Mother wasn't exactly proactive when it came to grocery shopping. That's why I alone had a car.

I turned on the shower, ridding myself of the massive t-shirt that I wore for the night. When I stepped in it was freezing, I shivered underneath the white showerhead that eventually started to warm up. Thank baby Jesus for small mercies.

Mornings always started this way, since I started high school anyway. I'd wake up too early, a habit since middle school since the school itself was quite far away. Normally Ralph would be on the floor, sprawled out on some blankets he would thieve off my own bed so he could create his own nest.

Shower, get dressed. Push Ralph into the bathroom. Forage for some food.

The cupboards were empty again, the bread already past its sell-by-date. I threw it out, but couldn't be bothered searching for anything else. I made a mental note of what needed to be restocked and grabbed some money out of the blue glass jar that sat nestled between plates and pans in the cupboard above my head.

"Elise," Ralph grumbled. He had shaved and I didn't really want to know who's razor he used for that. Another mental note; buy some razors.

"I'm hungry."

"I know, Ralph, let's go get coffee yeah?"

He nodded sleepily, grabbing his rucksack that he had left by the door. "I'm going to buy a muffin too."

"Great," I said jumping into my beaten up car. It didn't have long left in this life time, I guessed.

"Where's your mom this morning?"

I shrugged, fiddling with the air conditioner. I liked it cool in the car. "Probably fucking some guy for some loose change? Jesus, I don't know Ralph."

He wisely didn't bite, choosing to steal one of my cigarettes instead. "We should stop smoking."

"Yeah, we'll sleep when we're dead, old man."

He sighed, searching around the glove compartment for a useable lighter. "I'm serious. My lungs hurt."

I left the car running outside the coffee house whilst Ralph jogged in to get two black coffees and a muffin. There weren't many people around this time of the morning, mainly people out running or school kids taking a leisurely walk to school. I found myself watching them to pass the time anyway.

"Here we go!"

I frowned at his cheerful expression before he explained. "Extra shot of espresso."

School was already thriving with students, a living throbbing heart. Everyone was cheerful, friendly but mostly whispering behind each others backs. I hated school.

"Last day, woof!"

I rolled my eyes at Ralph, who had thrown his arms around me making it decidedly hard to walk.

"Quit it, ass pirate."

He scoffed. "Ass pirate? What, you want me to discover your booty?"

A few kids heard what he said and laughed, or some chuckled behind their hands. Ralph and I weren't exactly popular. All we had was each other. Social outcasts by choice.

"I'll discover your booty, any time Elise." I turned to find Victor Mills staring at the lower half of my body. I glared.

"Fuck you, Victor."

He leant casually against the lockers. His tall gangly build made him look awkward. Victor Mills was a stock-standard teenage bullshit artist. He was all talk.

"Well those are the words I wanted to hear. There is a party at my house tonight, come if you want to fuck me, like you said."

I shuddered, turning around to shove books away angrily in my locker. Ralph was chortling.

"Kiss me darlin'!" He said pouting, blocking my locker. Another game. Every day, since the age of ten Ralph had been asking me to kiss him. I think if I eventually relented, he'd be shocked.

"No gracias."

"Si!"

"No, perro."

He glared, downing the rest of his coffee. Mine already lay crumpled in a bin outside of school. I didn't litter take-away coffee cups, only cigarette ends.

School passed by in a blur, finals had been completed so there was a lot of photo taking and inane chatter going on. Ralph and I took one photo of ourselves in biology, pulling zombie like expressions, our chattering classmates as a background.

Ralph left his "mark" in school. Condoms inflated with helium and left everywhere. Library, cafeteria, random classes and hallways, all floating towards the impossibly high school ceilings. I believe some were even flavoured.

"Classic!" He was proud, his chest puffing out. If he was a peacock I'd imagine his tails would be up at this point, ruffling them around to get the females attention.

"Condoms, really?"

He shrugged, taking my camera off me. "You stole more books?"

I nodded, frowning. I couldn't help it. It seemed fine to steal books out of the library on the last day of school. Little kleptomaniac.

"Hemingway."

"Never read them. I like-"

"Comics and porn," I finished for him, ruffling his hair slightly.

We drove back from the grocery store in silence, listening to the local radio station even though we didn't enjoy the music. Ralph tapped his fingers along to the beat regardless.

The thing about Ralph is that he actually comes from a good home, out in the suburbs with white picket fences and large back yards. He even has a tree house, we spent years in that particular kingdom, when we were too young to roam the streets alone. We played soccer in the back yard. His mom cooks and cleans and although she is quite scatter brained, she's still lovely.

His dad is a doctor. They also happen to be rolling in dough, Ralph mentioned it was 'old money' with such a tired voice I never brought it up again.

But it's just the way he grew up I suppose, goofing around with me. Sometimes I wonder if I have ruined him in the slightest way. Hanging around in urban jungles until the early hours, smoking and cussing. An addiction to coffee.

_It could be worse; it could be heroin_, I mused to myself inwardly.

The house was eerily silent as we entered. He frowned at me, shrugging slightly as if to say _'what the fuck?'_

"Mom?" I called out loudly. There was no answer so I carried on through the tiny hallway and dumped the grocery bags onto the counter.

"Don't you think it's weird she hasn't come back yet?"

I put away the bread, coffee and sugar. "I don't know. Kind of."

"Want me to go look upstairs, see if she's asleep?"

I shrugged noncommittally. "Can if you want to."

Thundering footsteps, because Ralph is anything but quiet. I chuckled, shoving the canned fruit to the top shelf. Our diet wasn't that healthy in this house, we didn't have the cash for it and if we bought fresh fruit no one would eat it until it was too late anyway.

A door slammed up above me. "Shit!"

"What is it?" I called from below.

"Call the fucking police, that's what!" He came rushing into view, pale and ashen.

My blood ran cold at the sight of his usually jovial face. "What is it?"

He grabbed me around the waist, keeping me tight against him. "I swear, Elise. Do not go up there. Call the fucking police, you don't want to see that."

My panic showed, my breathing coming out in erratic gasps. I punched him in the stomach until he let me go, wincing. "What is it, Ralph?"

He looked down at the ground, light brown hair falling into his eyes.

"It's your mom, Elise. I think she's dead."

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**A/N: Well? Tell me what you think. :)**

**CC welcomed, but please if you're just going to say "it sucks," give a reason and your thoughts behind it. :)**

**endoftheday**


	2. It's a Sin

**Hey everybody!**

**First off, I want to thank those that reviewed/added the story onto their alerts. It means you've taken the time to read mine **_**and**_** Elise's story, because really it's hers as much as it is mine. She's very happy and hands out helium-inflated condoms as gifts! **

**Also - I've tried to reply to some of the reviews but some of you have disabled your private message option. So, to those who didn't get a reply, I apologise and thank you again.**

**Serious kudos to anyone who can guess what this story is a partial homage to. There will be certain hints occasionally in the text but mostly it's through the OC types that come drifting in and out of the story. With that said, enjoy guessing.**

**Oh and if you have looked at my profile you will note I am English. However, I'm trying to use as many Americanisms as I can. Twilight is American literature and I plan to treat it as such. Much like many American fan fiction authors write Harry Potter with U.K English rather than U.S English. **

**That's the end of my rambling, I promise!**

**Disclaimer; I don't own Emmett; I just like to play with him and Jasper some times. Stephanie Meyer owns all.**

**Currently listening to: It's a Sin by the Pet Shop Boys.**

* * *

"To liver disease," Ralph said, lifting his bottle of beer into the air. It had been a busy week since my mom died in her bed, in her sleep. Insurance, wills, and a funeral had taken up a lot of free time. Liver _fucking_ disease.

"Yep." I followed suit.

"So, I hate to ask this, but what are you going to do now?"

I shrugged, putting the bottle down behind me. We were in our old tree house; Ralph's mom was letting me stay at their house for now. My house, because it was my house now, was up for sale, my shoebox bedroom and rickety end table along with it. Although I doubted the new owners would want the table.

The thought saddened me slightly.

Two beaten up suitcases lay in Ralph's room. Books, C.D's and clothes were all I had left and it was all that I would want with me now.

"I've got to move."

He spat out the beer he was trying to swallow. "Fucking move to where?"

I grimaced, not liking any tiny bit of the move either. I couldn't stand Los Angeles, but this new hellhole sounds so utterly boring and so Ralph-less, I think I'll probably kill myself before I even get off the plane.

"Forks, it's in Washington. It rains constantly according to my social worker. Who goes _there_ to live?"

Ralph's lovely green eyes were blood shot, from the secret stash of beer we kept in the tree house no doubt. They were still wide with shock.

He whimpered. "When are you going?"

"Soon, I think. I've got a godmother who lives there who wants me 'settled in.' One of my dads old friends from school. I didn't realise it was his hometown; I knew we went there on vacation when I was young but mom never said where _exactly _in Washington. I always assumed it was DC or something."

Ralph wrapped his arms around me, beer sloshing down his t-shirt. "Kiss me."

I rolled my eyes at his pansy voice, but for the first time ever, I complied.

His tongue licked my bottom lip, asking for entrance before I finally deepened the kiss with an angry moan. Ralph's hands fell into my hair, finding my neck and keeping me locked in place.

Ralph didn't let me go. There wasn't a dry eye in the tree house that night.

- - - - - -

We promised each other letters, photos and constant emails. I could easily comply with his demand, because he was my best friend. My Ralph.

He had even come to the airport to wave goodbye; he had presents for me apparently. I had wondered why my luggage felt considerably heavier than before.

"I love you," he said, squeezing me hard. "One year, Jelly Elly."

"One year," I agreed sulkily.

I was embarrassed to realise that my social worker was taking the flight with me, I didn't like to be chaperoned under any circumstances, but this was so unforgiving for me. I grimaced at her instead of the fake, plastered on smile I had been aiming for.

The flight was boring as hell to begin with; my social worker had chosen us a couple of seats at the back of the plane. With our seats sorted, she began pulling out various pieces of paper and files as soon the plane was safely in the sky. She used the fold-down tray as her makeshift desk.

"Bloom?" I asked dumbfounded.

Marissa nodded with a smile. "Rosa Bloom, she's a lovely woman. She lives in Forks but works on the La Push reservation; she works at a diner as Head Waitress. When I happen to be out in La Push, I always try to stop for the breakfast and coffee. It's _amazing._"

I shrugged, leaning back in the seat. "Huh, you live in Forks?"

Marissa's wild caramel coloured curls bobbed madly beside me. "Yes, I'm based in Forks. The Los Angeles agency contacted with the Forks office to get everything sorted."

I nodded, she continued.

"She has one son, called Max. He has just finished college actually. He's into boxing, journalism and cars."

Another nod from me and she continued. "Hamish is Rosa's husband and Max's dad. He is a manager at a local book store that's near the police station."

"So no funny business?" I added with sour-faced smirk. I only received a pitying glance from Marissa.

"Now Elise, I know it will be hard to adjust to Forks, let alone a totally new situation. Just remember though, you only have to stay with the Bloom's for a year. If you choose to stay, I am sure Rosa will be pleased but if not; it is your choice. Remember kid, we've all got our choices."

We both fell into a silence, Marissa shuffling papers here and there and I just leaned back and watched the clouds from the little oval window. Damn right, it would be hard to adjust but I felt a determination. A sick kind of need to make it through the year, study my ass off and then I could go to whatever college I wanted to.

It didn't have to be Ivy League, in fact I'd probably prefer it if it wasn't Ivy League. There would be none of that over-bearing pressure to get grades that were continually spot on.

I frowned for the rest of the flight to Seattle, with that new determination stuck in the forefront of my mind.

- - - - -

Port Angeles airport was considerably smaller than the Seattle or Los Angeles airports. I quite enjoyed the smallness of it all, the crowds were easier to manage and the clean-freak part of me noted it was actually cleaner than the larger ones.

Marissa and I headed over to baggage claim; she also managed to acquire a trolley for my two cases. Whilst we waited for our respective luggage, I caught her glancing at me every few seconds, a slight frown rested on her brow. I sighed and she smiled lightly.

"I'm sorry, Elise."

I frowned at her, this time turning my head instead of using my peripherals. "What do you mean?"

Her head sank towards her chest, as if she was ashamed. "This is strictly _off _the record. We don't normally get involved emotionally. But your case…"

My luggage came around the conveyer belt luckily, so I could avert my eyes and focus on lifting it onto the trolley. Despite Ralph's 'gifts', whatever they may be, the cases were still relatively light for me.

"Your case shocked me," she finished lamely, grabbing her own small leather duffle as it came around. "I've never met someone in my line of work with _so_ many losses over such a short period of time. So I'm sorry, for everything Elise."

Lamely, I just nodded and followed her form through the revolving doors and into the waiting area for arrivals. There was a surprising amount of people there, despite the size of the airport. Marissa smiled and pointed at a group of three people standing near one of the exits.

"That's the Bloom family, recognise them?"

I rolled my eyes but looked for any familiarity anyway. The woman, with pale skin and long black hair was quite plump and rather soft looking in her petite frame. Her facial features were pretty, from what I could see but there was a harsh frown on her face. She looked cold.

The tall man next to her with tufts of light brown hair stood smiling behind her, although what he was smiling at I couldn't tell. He held a crutch in his left hand and was leaning on it slightly whilst his right hand was grasping his wife's shoulder.

Max, or I presumed it was him anyway, looked equally as cold as his mother. He stood slightly behind his parents, with the same tuft like hair as his father but jet black in colour. His thick arms were folded over his chest and I was immediately intimidated by his height and size.

The guy was freaking massive.

"Rosa!"

I glared at Marissa for ending my ability to watch them without them noticing my scrutiny. I turned back to face the family I would be living with for a year. Only a year, I told myself.

Surprisingly, Rosa was smiling so widely that I could see her bright white teeth. She even looked like she was laughing jovially with her husband, an excitement in her eyes. All the coldness I had seen before was gone.

"Oh, Elise!"

I smiled involuntarily; the action was infectious and couldn't be helped. Soon we were standing there, slightly awkwardly in my opinion.

"You look just like your father, Elise."

Hamish looked at me fondly and I couldn't help but wonder what my father had been like in high school to these people for them to stare so fondly at _me_. I definitely could not remember them from any time I visited Forks in my early childhood, it surprised me that they could recall an _'insignificant little girl'_ like me.

I shrugged sheepishly, "most people say I look like my mom."

Rosa shook her head before enveloping me in a surprisingly warm hug. I froze at the contact, and patted her back awkwardly. She laughed.

"Oh yes, just like your father."

Marissa was smiling like a loon, dragging Rosa away to sign some papers or whatever the hell happened in these kinds of 'transactions.'

Hamish smiled at me once again before handing me a neat little package tied in brown paper with string around it. "Marissa mentioned that you enjoyed reading in one of her emails. This was one your father actually stole from the high school library on his last day…"

His eyes had glazed over, a lost memory for him but it brought a slight shiver to my spine. My father, a little kleptomaniac like me? How bizarre.

"You don't have to open it yet, of course," He said eyeing me. I was probably being awkward and rude, but it's all I knew. Except for when I was with Ralph, of course.

"No, it's not that…"

My voice was _so _feeble, I thought angrily to myself. Why the hell couldn't I be my typical ballsy self around new people? I fought down the urge to hit something and gulped down a breath.

"It's just I'm kind of tired from the flight. California to Washington, and all that."

"Oh, I'm sorry Elise!" He ushered Max, who smiled a tad forcibly at me, into pushing my trolley for me.

"Really, it's no trouble. I can push a trolley; I'm just not that coherent after travelling."

"Nope, sorry Elise," Max finally spoke. His voice was hoarse and deep, exactly how I imagined him to speak. "I'm afraid I wouldn't let a little lady such as yourself carry your own bags."

I felt a slight fury at being called 'little lady' but I bit my lip instead of sniping back as I would normally. Max seemed to enjoy this and whistled lightly as he went out of the exit.

"Where's Max going?" Rosa said breathlessly, jogging slightly over to us. Marissa waved to me in the distance, heading to one of the exits herself.

"To the jeep with Elise's bags. Come on, let's get her home."

- - - - -

The ride to Forks had been full of conversation, mostly from my new family but it did give me an hour to hear about my father, the good memories at least. Mom never spoke about him after he left, just that he was running from us, along with some people he owed money to.

I didn't quite believe her, even still.

The Bloom's house was a standard detached three-bed home, complete with garage and basketball hoop on the side of the house. I liked the flowers that were practically over flowing and the grass that was slightly too long. It wasn't perfect and I loved the slight flaws.

"Well, this is home!" Hamish called, hobbling slightly as he unlocked the door.

"It looks nice," I whispered pathetically. I'd need to sort myself out before I even attempted speaking to these people anymore. My quiet phase was not amusing.

"Thank you dear, Max, show Elise to her new room." Rosa smiled lightly, grasping my shoulder slightly. "We start decorating tomorrow and buy a few things. It's your room after all. You should have it how you would want it."

I thought of the rickety end table and wine crate bookcase. "No, really. You don't have to. We can keep it how it is."

"Nonsense dear!" Rosa sang lightly, making her way into the kitchen. "Follow Max to your room and then you can sleep, if you'd like. I'll come get you when dinner is ready."

Keeping quiet, Max nodded his head in the direction of the stairs, my two suitcases under his arms. Shaking my head at his strength, I shouldered my rucksack and followed quietly.

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**A/N: Like it? Hate it? Wanna ask me something? Review your hearts out my dears! :)**

**Expect an update Thursday/Friday time. Till then, cheerio!**


	3. Dethbed

**Hi… *walks in with head bowed.***

**I realise I should have my tail tucked between my legs, it's been too long! I hope you forgive me for my absence. Real life gets in the way and it sucks. So does writers block and painters block? I don't know, I think I lost my muse for a while there.  
**

**I'm not too happy with this one, but I will let you know if it changes at all. **

**So here is chapter three, it's a 'filler' of sorts so that's why it's a little shorter than my previous chapters. I hope you can sense why there is a filler here at this point... if not...**

**I have failed. Huh.  
**

**Enough of my apologetic rambling, enjoy!**

**Currently listening to; Dethbed by Alkaline Trio.  
**

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* * *

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"White?"

Rosa's face was a picture, eyebrows raised and mouth slightly agape. She was ever so slightly incredulous at my colour choice for the bedroom walls.

Deciding that my quiet phase was completely unacceptable, I threw myself into all conversations that the family had that night and this morning. I didn't want to be excluded, or thought to be shy. That really wasn't the case.

I nodded, pulling out a hefty tin from the shelf. "It's fresh, timeless _and_ this one is fifty percent off."

She gestured wildly to the colour aisle and away from the decidedly 'safe' white and cream shelf, pointing at the purple and pinks. "Are you sure? What about green? Blue? Not even a pale yellow?"

I almost gagged at the thought of having a pale yellow bedroom, much like how my bedroom in Los Angeles was when I was younger, as soon as I had hit eleven that had to go. "White is great, Rosa. Honestly."

Eyeing me warily, she put the items on the counter ready to be ringed up. Gloss, paintbrushes and masking tape along with the large tin of white paint. I smiled at her widely and she just chuckled.

"I don't know why people think you're like your mom. Honestly, you are the spitting image of your father."

The Bloom family were marvellous, kind and very helpful and not in that over-bearing manner that I had expected. However, the topic of my father kept cropping up, along with the ever-touchy subject of my mom and her death. I knew I'd have to expect a sit-down conversation soon, but for now, I'd rather just carry on, oblivious to that certain subject.

Rosa's lasagne is also to die for.

"I guess if I was a guy it'd be different."

Rosa nudged my shoulder with her own. "You say that, but most people around here think that Max is just like me. Maybe his feminine side shines through, huh?"

A hearty chuckle sounded in front of us, alerting us to the cashier's sudden presence at the kiosk. A young kid stood there, maybe about thirteen years old with a lanky frame. This guy had a goofy grin on his face and I couldn't help but smile back.

"Hey Mrs Bloom, you not working today?"

Rosa shook her head, taking the plastic bag that the Native American kid handed her. "Not today, little Seth. I have a day off so Elise and I can finish her room and get her settled in. Poor kid flew all the way from Los Angeles yesterday."

"Los Angeles, huh?" he said with some amusement. "Wow, that must of hurt your wings if you flew _all the way _to little old Forks."

I rolled my eyes, grabbing the tin of paint from the counter. "Sure it did, _little Seth._"

"Now children," Rosa laughed, finally handing over the money. "Play nice."

"He started it," I muttered darkly, before Seth let out a loud guffaw that sounded throughout the tiny hardware store. Could this kid do _anything_ but happy?

"I'm heading to _Dorothy's_ tomorrow for breakfast," Seth finally said, sweeping his black hair away from his eyes. "Please tell me my favourite waitress is going to be there?"

Even Rosa rolled her eyes at his brown-nosing. "Sure kiddo, but remember that flattery doesn't get you an extra pancake."

**o O o**

"It's like watching paint dry," Max muttered sarcastically, his back propped up against the bed frame, his feet narrowly missing the fresh and drying paint.

Night had fallen and I had successfully spent the day avoiding any negative conversation about my mom and my dad, as well as my brothers. I had spent the day painting, buffing and sanding. Now, all of the furniture was squashed in the middle of the room.

"I'm bored."

Max chuckled. "Forks is boring, kid. Get used to it or better still why don't you do something proactive like unpack your things?"

I sneered at him, although I dragged my feet over to my suitcases, one of them flung open from this morning where I'd grabbed some fresh clothes.

"Surely it would be easier to wait until the paint dries?"

He snorted, grabbing the dresser and moving it back into it's original place. "Then you'd be without properly organised clothes for a few days? Hell if I know, but you're a girl and I bet you organise everything by colour and by use, huh?"

I turned to laugh at him. "Oh yeah, 'cause I would willingly be the type of girl that organises her closet. Knitwear or plaid first, Max?"

He threw a paintbrush at my head, which I dodged quite easily. "Nice try, Max. What do you do anyway? Marissa said you liked cars and journalism?"

"I intern at the local newspaper and work at a garage. Not much to tell, your social worker was right. I like cars and journalism."

I rolled my eyes at his somewhat blasé comment about his hobbies. Most people you ask would be passionate about their pastimes.

"You're so elusive Max," I said with false flattery. A pair of cut off sweat pant shorts in my hands. "What's that?"

He was holding my bag like it contained a bomb. I panicked, thinking he must of come across my underwear or something. Luckily he just pulled out a few packages.

"No wonder this bag was heavy, Elise. What the hell you got in here?"

The packages were not something I packed, but I had my suspicions. I cracked open the first cardboard box, finding a laptop inside. "Ralph."

Max frowned. "Ralph who?"

"Ralph is my best friend, growing up in quite a well off family. He's constantly giving me his old stuff, coming up with excuses and saying he doesn't need it anymore."

I pulled the laptop out of the box, pulling the power cord with it. I felt around until my hands found a folded piece of paper.

_**I've got a wizard desktop coming soon. It's proper sweet with the software. You can have this, no moaning at me later, bitch.**_

Chuckling, I rested the laptop on the desk beside me. "Let's see the other one then."

Max held out the square box awkwardly whilst I grabbed it roughly from him, not really meaning to be rude.

This box contained a DSLR camera and quite a good one at that. My mouth fell open when I reached inside and pulled out the lens.

_**I saw a man about a dog and left with this camera. Enjoy, Annie Leibovitz.**_

I was crying, but I wouldn't let Max see my sudden pansy attitude. I wiped the watery traitor from my cheek and put the camera with the laptop.

"You've got a good friend."

He was speaking softly, holding out the slightly thinner manila envelope to me. "Not many friends would be so thoughtful like that."

The gifts were second hand, no doubt about it but you could tell at least with the camera it had been treated with care. Whether the gifts were second hand or top of the range new shit, I didn't care. It was the fact Ralph was still looking out for me, even when I was in a Podunk town like this.

College application forms fell from the envelope, all from different states and all at different levels. There was even a few Ivy League thrown in there too.

_**We'll talk about it on instant messenger, bitch.**_

I couldn't help the next batch of tears that flowed, nor could I accept the fact I was sobbing uncontrollably over gifts from a friend, things that most of the kids at my old school would look over. I was crying more than I had over my own mom's death.

Max soon scooped me up into a surprisingly gentle brotherly hug, seemingly not caring if my tears got on his white t-shirt. He hummed and made comforting noises whilst I wept.

"It's okay to cry, Elise. This is a huge change."

I snapped out of it, pulling myself from his grasp. "This isn't a big deal," I said, my voice breaking. "A big deal is finding my mom dead. I can handle that. A big deal is the fact my dad is missing. Shit, he left when I was six. That I can handle. I'm stronger than this."

Max came back to me, shaking my shoulders. "Snap out of it, Elise. You've had a crappy start in life and don't argue with me. This guy, Ralph, has obviously been through it all with you. It's okay to be appreciative of that, even if it means you cry."

He pulled me back into an embrace, clothes in the bags forgotten along with the new gifts. I relished the feeling of such a familial hug and that little thought should have bugged the fuck out of me.

**o O _o_**

Even though Rosa wanted me to go to sleep early, I just had to finish setting up my room. I was heading to _Dorothy's_ with her tomorrow and didn't want to have to deal with sorting out my clothes or books for another day.

I finally finished around half two in the morning, pushing all the furniture into the right spot before cleaning up any crap I'd left anywhere. Clothes were put into the closet and books were neatly aligned on my new bookshelf. I thought of my old crate bookshelf and felt the nostalgia nearly overwhelm me.

My lighters were lined perfectly along my dresser drawers, a myriad of different colours and textures. I felt proud of my lighter collection; I had pilfered and bought over fifty so far. Not bad.

Once I had finished I cracked open the laptop and waited for it to load. Max had already told me that they had Wi-Fi here and gave me the details so I could log on.

Ralph had restored the laptop to factory settings, but had uploaded a few photos of us on there. The most recent being our last day of school together.

I chuckled at his zombie face whilst I downloaded the newest version of instant messenger, knowing Ralph would kill me if I wasn't online and talking to him by tomorrow night.

Once everything had been updated, I checked my email and saw a message from Ralph telling me to get my ass online. It was from this morning so I figured he wouldn't be awake at this time, or maybe he would be out.

I felt jealous for a moment, if Ralph goes out it would be with another person. He didn't really do alone like I could. Pity for myself wasn't floating my boat, so I sent a few sentences his way before closing the machine down.

Sleep came to me about four in the morning, leaving me with about two hours sleep before I had to get up. Although sleep didn't come easy, the nightmares certainly did.

* * *

**A/N: Did you see the reason for a filler? Slight bonding going on between Max and Elise. Max hasn't got an ulterior motive by the way; he really is just being brotherly. He's mine anyway. ;)**

**Hope you enjoyed it.**

**Until next time. ;)**

**P.s, You won't have to wait that long again. **


	4. You Drive Me Wild

The drive to _Dorothy's_ was a quiet one. Luckily, Rosa didn't feel the need to small talk first thing in the morning, for which I was grateful.

Rosa's shift started at six thirty and she finished at half past one. I'd said I would come hang out until she finished because Max was going into the paper to work today; they generally frowned upon young girls hanging around doing nothing but taking up valuable space.

It was an old-fashioned themed diner, something that you would find in the fifties or maybe out of the movie _'Grease.' _I smiled at the retro black and white chequered floor, pale blue walls and red tables, chairs and booths. The long bar was impressive, holding quite a few swinging chrome and red bar stools. They even had a jukebox. This place was awesome.

"Holy shit!"

Rosa laughed a proper belly laugh at my expletive but she didn't admonish me for it. "I know right? A lot of the customers appreciate the effort we put into the décor. Gives them a real laugh."

She began the morning routine, making sure all the dishes and cutlery were spotless, I even helped by sweeping and then bleaching the floor. By the time I had finished it was seven and nearly time to open the diner.

"How busy does it get on a weekday?"

"Pretty busy in the morning, we got guys and gals coming in before they shoot off to Port Angeles or even Seattle. They like a good breakfast before they go. Lunchtime can get busy, especially during the holidays with the La Push boys."

I raised my eyebrows, settling myself down on a stool. "Why, they eat a lot?"

"All young boys eat a lot; they can be compared to pigs in that respect."

I snorted with laughter at her simile, whilst two cooks and another waiter came in. She introduced me to everyone and thankfully, I didn't retreat into my shell.

It was nearly one o'clock, nearly time for Rosa's shift to end. For most of the morning, I had been reading or listening to my music; soda or coffee was on the house for me, which wasn't a bad deal.

I yanked the earphones out and hastily shoved the C.D player into my bag. The bell sounded over the door and out of habit, I swivelled on my stool.

Three guys walk in, two alarmingly tall boys walked in along with Seth trailing behind. The difference between the older and the younger was hilarious; they looked brooding whilst Seth looked like he would implode with happiness. He spotted me and nearly jumped onto the stool beside me. The other guys didn't take any notice and simply sat beside Seth, immersed in conversation.

"Hey Eli, how's it going?"

I shrugged. "Not too bad, just waiting for Rosa to get off."

One of the guys beside Seth perked up, turning his head towards us, his eyes searching mine out, a questioning look present on his face. There was a sudden crash from the guy pushing his stool over and he made his way over to me.

Seth looked genuinely freaked out by the guy's odd performance and I mused to myself that he was practising for 'Stomp' or some other street art, rather than acting like a douche.

"Who are you?"

He was literally snarling at me, his hot breath on my cheeks. Seth was chuckling nervously whilst the other tall guy tried to drag the lunatic away.

I squared my shoulders and raised my chin in mild defiance. "I'm Elise, who the hell are you?"

Another snarl ripped from his mouth and I felt a slight shiver go down my spine. Despite the fact, this guy was ridiculously intimidating; the snarling was kind of hot.

"He's Paul," Seth said, punching Paul's arm lightly. "Ow. Dude, how hard have you been working out?"

Before Paul could answer him, the other guy was dragging Paul towards the doors. Although it looked like Paul was putting up a good fight in resisting.

My heart hammering, I focused on Seth. He looked genuinely concerned after his friends, but stood rooted to the spot beside me.

"I guess he doesn't want a burger then."

I had spent the rest of my day mostly pacing my new room, everything in order since Max and I had sorted it out the previous night. My laptop was staring at me, open and ready to be switched on but I wasn't ready to speak to Ralph yet. My mind was too preoccupied with the angry man-boy who lost his cool in the diner.

There had been a heat, passion behind those brown eyes that I hadn't seen in anyone before. Not even Ralph looked at me that way, but then again he was only my best friend.

Who is the boy to you then? More.

I shook my head at the illogical thoughts and threw myself onto the bed.

Regardless of the passion behind his eyes, there had been utter fury too. Did he just hate newcomers? Hated change? What the hell had made him flip out on me, when I hadn't even said two words to him?

Of course, I probably had annoyed him even further when I had spoken to him.

Eyeing my laptop once more, I decided it was probably wise to send more than a few sentences to Ralph to stop his worrying. Because that was Ralph all over, to be worried about me.

The laptop buzzed and whirred into life, and I eagerly began bringing up my email account only to find four emails by Ralph ready for me, one being sent to me ten minutes after my message to him earlier in the morning. I felt kind of guilty after that.

**From: Ralph Jones**

**To: Elise Matthews**

**Subject: Where the hell are you?**

**You've probably gone to sleep, but bitch wake up! I have some news.**

**From: Ralph Jones**

**To: Elise Matthews**

**Subject: Speak, bitch.**

**I met this girl Elise, she is amazing. Not as cool as you, but still. Check out her picture! Met her last night… Or this morning?**

**From: Ralph Jones**

**To: Elise Matthews**

**Subject: Come online!**

**Took her out today, to the cinema. I think she digs the Ralph-Meister.**

**Please send me an email, bitch. Something more than a few sentences.**

**From: Ralph Jones**

**To: Elise Matthews**

**Subject: Last chance.**

**That's it! Last chance before I get on a plane to that Podunk town of yours and make you speak to me. What the hell have you been doing? Foraging for cigarettes?**

The last message had been sent ten minutes ago, so I sent a quick message to him saying not to get on a plane to the little 'Podunk town' before settling down to write a longer message.

What the hell could I say? The Bloom family were cool, really welcoming and they always had coffee and sugar in the house, the bread was never past its sell by date and as far as I could tell the only drinker in the house was Hamish, and he only drank a small glass of wine with his evening meal.

I was accosted by a large Native American boy that seemingly hates me from the first glance? He pushed a stool over in is haste to interrogate me? Yeah because that would soothe his worries.

Instead, I started by thanking him for the gifts, and then glazed over the information about the Bloom family simply stating that they were cool. I asked about this girl, who in his picture had a short pixie like haircut, dyed a brilliant red. She was pretty for sure and looked good next to Ralph.

A knock on the door made me jump, but I relaxed as Rosa entered looking mildly concerned.

"What happened with Paul earlier, at the diner?"

Huh. Paul. I had already forgotten his name. "I don't know. I don't even know him."

Rosa frowned before correcting herself. "Don't take it to heart, Elise. Paul is going through some bad times at the moment…"

I scoffed. Bad times, yeah. I could dig that.


End file.
